1974 graduate receives award

Bob Keith

Posted: Tuesday, March 22, 2016 at 3:35 PM

Bob Keith, a 1974 graduate from Southeast
Community College's Diesel Technology program and most recently
Immediate Past Chairman of the I‑CAR International Board of Directors,
was awarded the Founder's Award for his dedication and service to I‑CAR
at the recent 2016 I-CAR Volunteer & Instructor Conference held in
Orlando, Fla.

Keith has served on the
I-CAR International Board of Directors since 2008, serving in various
roles on the I-CAR Executive Committee before serving as chairman in
2014-2015.

"It has been an honor to
serve with some of the best minds in the industry who regularly take off
their stripes in order to make sure that I-CAR meets its vision that
every person in the collision repair industry has the information,
knowledge and skills required to perform complete, safe and quality
repairs for the ultimate benefit of the consumer," Keith said.

He
is senior director of operations training for CARSTAR and is
responsible for the creation and delivery of CARSTAR specific training
to the CARSTAR system. He has been a collision shop owner for more than
35 years and owns two collision shops in Nebraska and two in Kansas.
Prior to working for CARSTAR, he worked three years for Carlson Systems
and seven years with Caterpillar as a truck engine performance
specialist.

Keith has been involved
with I-CAR for many years as a volunteer prior to becoming a board
member and chairman. He has an ASE Master Certification in Collision
Repair and is a graduate of the AMI Accredited Automotive Management
program. His industry affiliations include Skills USA National Technical
Committee working with the structural repair competition; AMI Board of
Trustees, treasurer; and the CAPA Technical Committee. He is co-chair of
the CIC Education Committee and a member of the CIC Definitions
Committee.

Immediate Past Chairman Joe
Laurentino said, "It is an honor to present the Founder's Award to my
friend and mentor Bob Keith. Bob has dedicated his career to training
and education and unselfishly gives back to our industry. I-CAR is well
positioned today to deliver on our mission due in part to Bob's
leadership on the board and executive committee."

Keith
has been heavily involved in numerous national and local activities and
has a series of credentials, including Master Structural Damage
Analysis Professional certification from Chief Automotive and Advanced
Safety Certificate from the National Safety Council.

He is a native of Omaha and still lives there. He and his wife Margaret
have two grown daughters and three grandchildren. When not on the road
for CARSTAR he spends his time caring for his property, camping,
woodworking, and restoring his 64 Chevrolet Nova SS.

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For more information contact:
Stu Osterthun
Administrative Director of Public Information and Marketing
402-323-3401
sosterthun@southeast.edu